A.N Wow, this is a long chapter, much longer than I originally intended, but either way, Yusuke's back! The real Spirit Detective Saga awaits!

I don't own YYH, only my OCs, and greatly appreciate feedback.

Chapter 4

"What on earth happened here?" Keiko inquired upon arrival at the Urameshi house.

Sakura wordlessly handed over the note Atsuko had left behind.

Hi Girls

Be gone for a little while. Take care of Yusuke for me.

"She knew you were coming over so we could study together," Sakura muttered in a cold fury. "She must have left before I woke up. Though exactly where she's gone in this heat is beyond me,"

Atsuko's brief moment of decent parenting was never going to last long, but much to Sakura's annoyance, she'd started drinking again in celebration minutes after discovering Yusuke was alive. And if that wasn't bad enough, to say the house had turned to a state of disarray would be the understatement of the century.

"Guess she's back to normal," Keiko sighed. She picked her way to the room where Yusuke was and gazed in horror at the scene.

"Kura, this is terrible. Even Yusuke's covered in garbage! What kind of parent leaves their child like this? I swear, it should be some kind of felony!"

"Don't I know it," Sakura spat, mopping the sweat from her forehead.

Keiko huffed in frustration, but accidentally stepped on one of Atsuko's (many) discarded alcohol bottles. She lost her balance and fell, smacking her head against the wall before Sakura could do anything. The resultant crash caused a half-eaten bowl of ramen to fall on Yusuke's face, followed by several heavy books.

"Oh no!" Sakura cried. She rushed over.

"Yusuke! Hold on Yusuke, I'm coming!" Keiko frantically began pulling the debris off him.

Once he was uncovered, Sakura dropped her head into her hands. "I'm done, Keiko. This is just beyond words,"

"No, Kura, don't think like that. Look, I'll come over everyday, otherwise Yusuke might not have a body to come home to,"

"To be perfectly honest, it's a miracle Yusuke and I survived this long with Mother being the way she is," Sakura admitted.

"Just look at his face, it's all covered with dust," Keiko said sadly.

"His face isn't the only thing. I'll get started on the window sill," Feather duster in hand, Sakura turned and began attacking the dirt coating the windows.

"There you go, Yusuke. You're all clean now," Keiko muttered behind Sakura.

As Sakura began the mammoth cleaning task ahead of her, her mind wandered to what was going to happen with her brother. More than a week had passed, and he still wasn't back, nor had she had any contact with him.

What could possibly be taking him so long?

Sakura turned to ask Keiko if she could grab the disinfectant, but wasn't prepared for what she saw. Keiko was stroking Yusuke's face, and she was getting far too close to his lips...

"Keiko?"

The latter jerked back as though she'd been burned. "Wh-what?"

"Uh, Keiko? You ok there?"

Keiko was spared answering, thanks to the Neighbourhood Watch announcement blaring.

"Attention everyone! This is the Neighbourhood Watch Committee, announcing a general Heat Advisory for the rest of the afternoon. Please keep children and pets inside, or well watered. Also keep in mind, the added risk of fire in this heat. We've had two fires break out already, and foul play is suspected. So please, be careful,"

The two girls stayed silent for a second before Keiko jumped up. "Oh...yes, shopping!"

"...Shopping? What about it?" Sakura looked at Keiko curiously, wondering if she'd just seen what she thought she'd seen.

"My mother wanted me to go shopping after school! Yes, I'll...just have to clean this room later on,"

Keiko hurried from the room.

"Keiko! What are you doing? Where are you going?" Sakura struggled through the mess after her friend.

"Sorry Kura, I have to do this first. Why don't you come with me?"

Sakura looked incredulous. "Keiko, are you for real? You can go if you want, but I have to at least try and get this place under control,"

"I won't be long, I promise!" Keiko waved and dashed off.

"Why me?" Sakura muttered as she stalked back into the house.

Had Keiko really tried to kiss Yusuke? Was she just imagining it? She'd heard that Keiko had actually turned down a boy who asked her out earlier in the week, saying she had feelings for someone else, but could that someone...have been Yusuke?

Get a grip, Sakura, she told herself sternly. Even if it was, are you honestly going to ask Keiko about this? It's hardly the most pressing issue. Now get back to work.

She glanced down at her twin. He looked so calm and peaceful lying there without his trademark smirk. So young, so vulnerable.

Come back soon. I miss you.

Sakura picked up the bottle of disinfectant and began spraying every surface in reach. She didn't even want to think about the mounds of bacteria taking refuge in this pigsty. Hopefully by the time Keiko returned, she might even be able to see the floor...

SMASH!

The sound of shattering glass broke Sakura's concentration.

She looked around. Had that sound come from next door? There was a weird crackling noise...and what was that smell? Was it smoke?

Sakura walked towards the source of the sound, only to be greeted by a giant wall of flames in the kitchen. She gasped in horror.

The house is on fire!

The inferno was spreading faster than she would have thought possible. How could this have happened? She hadn't used any kind of candle, and nor had her mother. But with the way the fire was behaving, Sakura could already tell this was no mere accident. Flames were already licking the door frame, and they'd moved to the staircase. As far as she could see, her one escape route was almost cut off. Thick black smoke was already obscuring her vision and choking her lungs.

"Miss Urameshi! Sakura? Is anyone in there?" Sakura could hear faint shouts outside, presumably from the neighbours.

"Yes, I'm here!" Sakura screamed back, but the effort and smoke inhalation only caused her to cough wildly.

"She's in there!" one of the voices cried out, as sirens began to wail.

I have to get out of here, she thought frantically. But I can't leave Yusuke behind!

Sakura dropped to the ground and crawled back to Yusuke. If his body burned, there was no way he could come back.

She threw herself across his body in an attempt to shield it from the flames, beating out the tongues of fire that had started on the blanket. She was feeling faint and dizzy from the lack of oxygen, and flames were everywhere she looked.

I have to get him out, I have to!

"Yusuke! Kura!" shrieked a voice. Sakura whipped her head around to see Keiko struggling through the flames. She was drenched in water and looked scared, but determined.

"Keiko!" Sakura choked. "I can't leave him!"

Keiko wrapped another blanket around Yusuke. Sakura heaved one of Yusuke's arms around her neck and staggered to her feet.

Keiko supported Yusuke's other side. "Come on!"

The girls began dragging Yusuke through the door. A creaking overhead gave them a split second's warning to jump out of the way as a giant beam from the roof came crashing to the ground.

"The door's blocked!" Sakura cried out. The fire had grown in size and was now covering the only escape route.

"Sakura, what do we do?!" Keiko's eyes were wide with terror.

Sakura looked around, desperately searching for some way out, when she spotted Yusuke. He looked wild, like a man possessed. She could have sworn she heard him scream Keiko's name, then hers, and hurl something directly in front of them.

An explosion forced Sakura to shut her eyes, only opening them at the sound of an unearthly roar. What appeared to be a dragon emerged, made entirely of light. Sakura stared, speechless. Keiko's face was a mix of fear and amazement at this creature, which flew forward and spiralled into a clear path to the door.

"Sakura…" Keiko's voice was trembling. "Can this be real?"

"Yusuke?" Sakura breathed.

Squirt, go now. You don't have much time!

Sakura gritted her teeth and forced herself to move. "Come on Keiko, we have to go!"

She had no idea what was going on, but she certainly wasn't complaining if it meant they could all get out. The girls inched their way forward through the tunnel.

"We'll make it Yusuke," Keiko said. "We will!"

A silhouette arrived at the door. "Keiko! Sakura!"

Sakura recognised the voice. "Kuwabara?"

Kuwabara raced towards the girls, grabbed hold of Yusuke's body and before they knew it, they were outside. Sakura fell to the ground, coughing and spluttering.

"Kura!" Keiko dropped beside her. "Are you ok? Are you hurt?"

Sakura couldn't talk. She gasped for air.

"Kura, you're burnt!" Keiko looked horrified.

Sakura glanced down. The adrenaline pumping through her body meant she hadn't noticed the angry, blistered burns on her arms. But she was more worried about her twin.

"Keiko...you have...to...get...Yusuke..out of here," Sakura wheezed.

"I'm so sorry Kura. If I'd been there-!"

Sakura gripped Keiko's hand. "Later! Take Yusuke!"

"But Kura, I can't leave you!"

"I'll...be...fine,"

Fire engines rolled down the street with their sirens wailing.

"Typical. Now the fire trucks arrive!" Kuwabara snorted. He turned to the girls. "Hey, what you got under the blanket anyway?"

Keiko awkwardly opened her mouth but was too busy rubbing Sakura's back to think of how to answer.

Kuwabara peeled away the fabric and jumped. "AHH! What are you doing with Yusuke's body?"

"I promise I'll tell you everything, but not right now. We've got to get him somewhere safe, and I think Kura may need medical attention,"

This did nothing to calm Kuwabara. "Are you some type of sick grave robber?! Sakura?! What the hell is going on?"

"No - you - idiot!" Sakura gasped. "Keiko, go! Take him!"

Still looking thoroughly disturbed, Kuwabara threw Yusuke over his shoulder, grabbed Keiko's hand and took off. "Come on, we can't let the police get hold of you!"

They disappeared into the distance and Sakura breathed a sigh of relief.

"Miss Urameshi?"

Sakura turned to see Mrs Shioka, a neighbour, standing over her. "Oh my dear, what on earth happened to you? You're burned!"

Sakura clenched her jaw to deal with the pain she was beginning to feel. "I...I…" she dissolved into another coughing fit.

"Don't try to speak, dear. The ambulance is here," Mrs Shioka said soothingly. Right on cue, the paramedics arrived on the scene.

"Signs of smoke inhalation and burns to the arms. What's her name? Where are her parents?"

The voices became a blur as Sakura began to feel the extent of her injuries. An oxygen mask slipped over her face. Her arms were wrapped and she was lifted onto a stretcher.

"Are you in pain, Miss Urameshi?" the male paramedic asked, measuring her oxygen levels. Sakura nodded, tears in her eyes.

"We're just going to give you some pain relief and something to calm you down. Don't worry, dear. You're going to be fine," the female medic smiled at Sakura, who barely flinched when they injected her.

"You're a brave girl. We'll take good care of you," the woman stroked Sakura's hair as she lost consciousness.

Sakura awoke to the sound of beeping machines. Her eyes were fuzzy at first but quickly regained focus. She was lying in a hospital bed, and beside her was Atsuko and Keiko.

"Kura! You're awake!" Keiko cried. "How are you feeling?"

"Honey... I am so, so sorry," Atsuko whispered.

Sakura slowly sat up, feeling dizzy. "Where am I?"

"You're in the hospital, Kura. Don't you remember? The fire?"

Sakura's brown eyes widened with fear. "The fire, oh God, Yusuke!" she began to get out of bed.

Keiko gently pushed her back down. "Kura, it's ok, it's ok, he's fine. But you need to stay still. You...you got burned,"

Sakura glanced down, noticing the thick bandages wrapped around her arms. The IV drip was poking out from underneath.

"They're not too serious," Atsuko said reassuringly.

As if summoned from those words, the doctor walked into the room. "Ah, Miss Urameshi. You're awake," he said briskly. "Tell me, how do you feel?"

"Sore," Sakura said honestly.

"Well, like your mother was saying, you're going to be fine.."

The doctor went on to explain that the smoke inhalation had been taken care of and Sakura's burns were fairly deep, but thankfully not too serious. She'd need to be in hospital for a day or two for proper treatment, but should be home soon.

"You're very, very lucky, Miss Urameshi," he smiled. "As long as there's no infections, even the scarring from these burns should be minimal. Any questions?"

Sakura shook her head.

"Very well. Why don't you get some rest? I'll be back in the morning," He placed Sakura's chart at the end of the bed and left Sakura with Keiko and Atsuko.

"Keiko, your hair!" Sakura realised that Keiko's beautiful brown hair was much shorter.

"Yeah," Keiko smiled ruefully, touching her new hairstyle. "It got burned. It's ok though. We made it out, Yusuke's body is safe, what else matters?"

Sakura paused. "Mother, I'm a little thirsty. Would you mind getting me some water?"

"Sure, Sakura," Atsuko left the room.

"Keiko," Sakura began slowly, "That tunnel of blue fire, you felt Yusuke's presence too, didn't you?"

Keiko nodded. "Yes, I did. I was saying to Atsuko that he was there,"

"I still can't believe it!" a familiar voice boomed from the doorway. Kuwabara charged in, laughing fit to burst. "Urameshi's coming back! I can fight that punk again!"

"I'm sure he can't wait either," Sakura smiled. "Where's Yusuke now?"

"He's at the place your mother's staying at. He's fine, I promise," Keiko reassured.

Sakura sank back onto her pillows with a mix of relief and frustration. "Ugh! I can't believe I'm going to be stuck here for two days! What about school?"

"Kura," Keiko laughed, "I'll bring your homework to you, and honestly, I think the fact that you're in hospital with burns takes priority, don't you?"

Sakura opened her mouth to argue, but realised it was pointless and lay back down in defeat.

"Get some rest, Kura. I'll come by tomorrow, ok?"

Keiko kissed Sakura's cheek and left her with Kuwabara.

"Are you ok, Sakura? You're not hurt too bad, are you?"

"No, I'll be ok. And I wanted to thank you for your help today, Kuwabara. We never would have made it if you hadn't shown up when you did,"

Kuwabara flushed slightly and giggled. "Aww shucks, Sakura. I only did what a real man would do!"

"You were so brave," Sakura smiled. "I'm guessing Keiko filled you in?"

"Uh-huh! Urameshi's coming back, Urameshi's coming back!" Kuwabara was doing a kind of victory jig around the room.

Atsuko returned with the water Sakura requested. Knowing Kuwabara was far too excited to have any kind of conversation, Sakura allowed Atsuko to remove him. Soon after, Atsuko headed home, but promised to send Keiko the next day with keys to their new accommodation.

That night, Sakura dreamed of her brother.

His body lay before her, glowing golden. Keiko was holding his body up and planted a gentle kiss on his lips before the scene transformed into what she'd seen right before their miraculous escape from the fire. Yusuke, screaming her and Keiko's name, and throwing something into the fire without hesitation. What that object had been, she didn't know. But she suspected she'd find out soon enough.

The next day, Sakura wasn't expecting any visitors except Keiko, and certainly not until after school, so she was shocked when Mr Yukimura, Keiko's father, entered her hospital room just after lunchtime.

"Mr Yukimura! What are you doing here?"

"Keiko's mother passed out at work earlier on. She's in here too. She'll be just fine!" Mr Yukimura said immediately, seeing Sakura's horrified face. "Keiko's with her now. She just overworked herself a little in the heat is all. Now, as for you Miss Sakura…"

"I feel much better already," Sakura said quickly. "The nurses have already changed the bandages and they said I should be fine to go home soon, probably the day after tomorrow,"

"I'm glad you're going to be home soon, Sakura," Mr Yukimura ruffled her hair. "I'm sure Keiko will be down later on. Her mother's sleeping, but she insisted on staying with her,"

"Sounds like Keiko,"

Mr Yukimura chuckled. He ruffled her hair again. "I have to go back to work now, but as soon as you feel up to it, make sure you stop by the restaurant, ok?"

"I will, Mr Yuki. I promise,"

Night had fallen by the time Keiko arrived, but Sakura was still awake.

"Kura, I'm so sorry. I left school early, so I wasn't able to get your homework," Keiko apologised.

"Keiko," Sakura sighed. "Your mother is way more important than what Rat Face wants me to do,"

"Using my own words against me," Keiko teased. "But fair enough, I suppose," she flopped onto a chair.

"Is your mother going to be ok?"

"Yeah, just exhausted and a little dehydrated. She's sleeping. What about you?"

"Well, aside from being bored out of my mind, I feel ok. There's pain, but not a lot. They're going to let me go home soon. Hopefully sleeping in my own bed will stop these weird dreams,"

"You had a weird one too, huh? What was it about?"

"I don't know if you want to hear it; my mind's a bizarre place,"

"Come on, I'll tell you about mine if you tell me yours,"

Sakura huffed. "Ok, fine, but could you do me a favour and do something about my hair? I can't do much with these bandages on,"

"Sure," Keiko pulled her hairbrush out of her bag and began combing through Sakura's midnight-black hair. "Wow, it's nearly midnight. I didn't realise it was so late. Now spill, what was this dream of yours?"

"Uh...well, you were in it, and so was Yusuke..." Sakura began evasively. "Yusuke's body was glowing this golden colour and then, uh, in my dream, you kind of...kissed him…"

Keiko's brushing stopped dead. Sakura awkwardly turned to see her friend's reaction.

Keiko leapt to her feet. Her face had turned deathly white. "Yusuke," she breathed. Then, without a word, she turned on her heel and ran out of the room like greased lightning.

"Keiko? Keiko! ...God, would it kill her to tell me where she's going?" Sakura rolled her eyes. Keiko was right about one thing though. It was late. She adjusted the bed to lay flat and settled in for the night.

Sakura woke the next morning to the nurse removing her IV.

"Miss Urameshi, good news. Look like you're being discharged today once the doctor gives the all clear,"

"Oh really?" Sakura breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank God. I just want to go home,"

"One more thing," the nurse smiled like she had a secret. "You have a surprise visitor,"

Sakura raised an eyebrow. "A surprise visitor? Who?"

"Who do you think, Squirt?"

Sakura's breath caught in her chest. That voice. Could it be? Hardly daring to breathe, she slowly turned to the door.

There he was, lounging on the doorway, hands in pockets. He wasn't wearing his favourite green outfit. Rather, he was dressed in jeans, a checked shirt and had a green jacket thrown on top. His hair (though atypically flattened) and eyes identical to hers, that mischievous grin, exactly as she knew him.

"Yusuke?" Tears began running down her cheeks.

He traipsed over to the bed and put a hand on her cheek. "Hey there, Kura,"

Sakura could no longer contain herself. Ignoring her injuries, she threw her arms around her twin's neck, bawling and clutching him to her.

"Come off it, Squirt. You're smothering me," he cackled, disentangling himself.

"Yusuke….you're...here," Sakura managed to choke out between sobs.

"Yeah, I'm here, Kura. It's all ok, I'm back. And I'm here to take you home,"

Sakura wiped her eyes on the bed sheets. "I just...missed you. So much,"

"I missed you too, kid," Yusuke grinned and ruffled her hair.

Sakura swatted his hands away as best she could. "Hey, quit it! As if it needs to look worse,"

"Well that's what I'm here for, right?" Keiko had arrived, carrying a bag Sakura recognised as one of her own. "Hey, Kura. I brought you some clothes, and I should probably make up for that hairstyle I never finished last night," she said sheepishly, pulling out Sakura's hairbrush.

"Miss Urameshi?" the nurse returned. "Your discharge paperwork is ready. You've been cleared to go home,"

"Thanks, Nurse. You can leave the room for a minute," Keiko ordered Yusuke.

"Awww, why?" he whined.

"Because I'm getting dressed, dimwit," Sakura shot back.

Once Yusuke obediently left, Keiko helped Sakura change from her hospital gown into black leggings, a blue cotton tank top and her favourite cropped cardigan. Yusuke returned while Keiko brushed Sakura's long hair and placed it in a twisted bun at the base of her head.

"That feels so much better," Sakura sighed. "I finally look like a human being again. Let's go!"